How Ströer’s IT security benefits from our Managed SOC Services.

The challenge

Like many other companies, Ströer’s IT security was heavily focused on the corporate intranet. Their own IT infrastructure could take place mainly within the company, in offices connected via WAN. This changed abruptly when, due to the Corona pandemic, 80% of the workforce was suddenly working from home instead of the office.

“In the process, we realized that our security systems were no longer up to the challenge of providing identity-based security.”

Jérôme Patt (VP Cloud Architecture & IT Operations at Ströer)

In response to this new environment, it was clear that there was a need for endpoint protection that had some cloud-based capabilities and that could correlate the cloud identity of individual home office workers with activity on the clients and systems to provide a holistic view of IT security.

The solution

To achieve this, Ströer streamlined its system by replacing its poorly connected, non-centralized endpoint protection, which relied heavily on traditional on-premises server systems, with a modern, cloud-based security architecture. In doing so, they implemented the Microsoft 365 Defender Suite.

“One of the big challenges is understanding what the new tools can do. When you see every security threat, every alert, there needs to be a categorization and classification of those threats. This is where WATER comes in with its Managed SOC Services.”

Jérôme Patt (VP Cloud Architecture & IT Operations at Ströer)

We provided Ströer with solutions that were not only tailored to their needs, but also connected to their existing IT security tools. As a result, Ströer did not have to rebuild its entire IT infrastructure, and the onboarding process was quite simple.

“It was like buying a new car. And then WATER explained us all the buttons and functions. That’s how they helped us get the most out of the Microsoft 365 Defender Suite.”

Jérôme Patt (VP Cloud Architecture & IT Operations at Ströer)

The benefits

We helped Ströer transition to a 16x7 SOC, where all security incidents are consolidated into a central SIEM solution: Microsoft Azure Sentinel. These incidents can then be tracked, sorted, and quickly resolved in a comprehensive dashboard.

“The operation of the Managed SOC by water is also an efficient solution for us. To operate something like this in-house, we would simply lack the resources and quality.”

Jérôme Patt (VP Cloud Architecture & IT Operations at Ströer)

Another benefit for Ströer: the solutions we use are also very scalable. As Ströer is expected to continue to grow in the future, the Microsoft 365 Defender Suite is a great way for the company to manage this growth.

“We also value the fact that, in addition to their expertise, WATER has a comprehensive view of the current IT security situation. They proactively keep us up to date on the changing threat landscape and give us ideas on how to further strengthen our IT security.”

Jérôme Patt (VP Cloud Architecture & IT Operations at Ströer)

About Ströer

Ströer is a leading German media house and offers advertising customers individualized and fully integrated, end-to-end solutions along the entire marketing and sales value chain. Ströer is focusing on the strength of the OOH business with its “OOH+” strategy, supported by the ‘Digital & Dialog Media’ and ‘DaaS & E-Commerce’ segments. With this combination, the Company is well positioned to consistently grow its customer relevance and thanks to strong market share and long-term agreements on the German market, gain an above-average share in market growth in the coming years.

The Company has approximately 10,000 employees at over 100 locations. In fiscal year 2022, Ströer generated revenue of EUR 1.77b. Ströer SE & Co. KGaA is listed in Deutsche Börse’s MDAX. 

More information on the company can be found at
www.stroeer.de/en/